Blue Trust Inc. Has $70,000 Stock Holdings in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE)

Blue Trust Inc. decreased its position in STERIS plc (NYSE:STE) by 64.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 339 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 602 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in STERIS were worth $70,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Planning grew its stake in shares of STERIS by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 9,019 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,187,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 25.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 8,387 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,005,000 after purchasing an additional 1,713 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of STERIS by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,705 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,869,000 after purchasing an additional 1,904 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its stake in STERIS by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 44,912 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $10,893,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its stake in STERIS by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 11,455 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $2,778,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on STE shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of STERIS in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of STERIS from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $265.00 price target on shares of STERIS in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of STERIS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $240.00 target price on shares of STERIS in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.75.

STERIS Stock Performance

NYSE STE opened at $220.43 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.80 and a beta of 0.84. STERIS plc has a twelve month low of $197.82 and a twelve month high of $248.24. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $213.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $223.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

STERIS (NYSE:STE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.33 by ($0.01). STERIS had a return on equity of 13.91% and a net margin of 8.66%. Sell-side analysts expect that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. STERIS’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.41%.

STERIS Company Profile

STERIS plc provides infection prevention products and services worldwide. It operates through four segments: Healthcare, Applied Sterilization Technologies, Life Sciences, and Dental. The Healthcare segment offers cleaning chemistries and sterility assurance products; automated endoscope reprocessing system and tracking products; endoscopy accessories, washers, sterilizers, and other pieces of capital equipment for the operation of a sterile processing department; and equipment used directly in the operating room, including surgical tables, lights, and connectivity solutions, as well as equipment management services.